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Career Expert Julia Rock Shares The Best Tips For Scoring Your Dream Job
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Career Expert Julia Rock Shares The Best Tips For Scoring Your Dream Job

Let's face it, when you walked across the graduation stage, making coffee runs, copies, and small talk was not on your dream job list.


When you're young, your dream job might be acting as a biochemist for the top makeup brand in the world, or slaying courtrooms in the name of the law as the attorney of your own firm. It might be writing for a top publication, being a showrunner for a popping television program, or a decorated educator of a thriving public school. But like most of us, somewhere along the line that dream gets deferred.

It's now been years and you feel stuck between a rock and a…swivel chair. Paying the rent is high on your priority list, but so is living out your purpose through your dream job. Because that's what a dream job is, something that both feeds you and fuels you. To help us get closer to making our dreams a reality, we spoke with someone who knows a thing or two about landing a dream job: Julia Rock.

Courtesy of Julia Rock

By day, Julia is the certified girl boss heading the finance department for a Fortune 500 Company. And by night, she is lending her skill-set of helping job seekers reach their fullest potential in their career goals through her company Rock Career Development. Launched in 2013, Rock Career Development embodies her calling to empower individuals to unlock and achieve their full professional potential, no matter what career path they choose.

Julia spoke with xoNecole and shared four tips on what you need to do today to score your dream job.

1.Get your LinkedIn life! 

"It's common knowledge that having a LinkedIn profile is important in your job search as most recruiters are vetting candidates through LinkedIn at this point (80+%) yet for some reason candidates will still have incomplete profiles, missing profile photos, or lackluster position descriptions. Invest time in creating an outstanding LinkedIn profile, and you will find yourself gaining some traction in obtaining that dream job!"

2.Network and build genuine connections.

Courtesy of Julia Rock

"'It's not just what you know, but who you know!' I'm not just talking about attending the occasional networking event and trying to grab as many business cards as possible. If you really want that dream job with your ideal employer, you will need to be intentional about networking opportunities. Find events you can attend that will allow you to informally meet key people in your industry and decision-makers, and MAINTAIN those connections, i.e. follow up after the meeting, schedule time for lunch, coffee, etc.

"See if you can schedule informational interviews with those you have met who already do what you do. Utilize social media to authentically engage with current employees and recruiters, and start to build a rapport. Tap your personal network of family and friends to see if they have connections that they can share or make introductions for you."

3.Prepare for your interviews BEFORE they are even scheduled. 

"Most people wait until they have scored an interview to truly get prepared and know how to sell themselves. They're up late the night before, practicing in the car, and making themselves nervous on the way to the interview. But the truth is, you will be more confident in your interviews if you have already prepared yourself for some of the interview questions in advance. You can utilize online forums to gain insight into how the interviews for various companies are conducted, what kinds of questions they ask, etc. You can also do mock interviews with friends or other professionals to get feedback on your delivery and content in answering questions so that you can begin to improve."

4.TARGET your resume.

Courtesy of Julia Rock

"Your resume should not be all things to all people. If you have truly defined your dream position and understand what critical skills and experience are required, take the time to focus your resume for that industry and job role. Incorporate keywords that will get your resume picked up by applicant tracking systems (ATS). Eliminate non-value added skills and extremely old positions that are not relevant to the role you're pursuing. Add in accomplishments and major contributions that highlight the skills you have that are required and desired for your dream job. Remember, recruiters take only six seconds or less to read your resume, so you've got to catch their attention, and fast!"

For more information about Julia Rock, check out Rock Career Development or follow her on Instagram.

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